HarperCollins Study Bible
Page 223
89.15 Festal shout, shouts of the people at the festival celebration of the Lord’s rule (cf. 2 Sam 6.15).
89.17 Horn, an image for the king.
89.19–37 An oracle of God in a vision, establishing the covenant with David and his descendants as the kings of Israel (cf. 2 Sam 7.4–17; Ps 132).
89.19 Spoke in a vision, probably to a prophet (cf. 2 Sam 7.4, 17).
89.24 Faithfulness and steadfast love. Cf. v. 14. Horn, i.e., strength.
89.26 Father. For the notion of the king as adopted by God, cf. 2.7; 2 Sam 7.14.
89.30–37 God will punish any of the Davidic kings who disobey God’s will as reflected in the laws but will not take away the kingship bestowed by covenant.
89.38–51 A lament or prayer for help for a defeated king.
89.38–46 Words of complaint to and against God, characteristic of prayers for help. Here they presume that the defeat of the king represents God’s abandonment of the covenant and promises to the Davidic line.
89.41 Neighbors, perhaps neighboring nations.
89.46 How long? See note on 6.3.
89.47–51 The petition of the king for restoration through God’s steadfast love (vv. 1, 2, 14, 24, 28, 33) and faithfulness (vv. 1, 2, 5, 8, 14, 24, 33) to the covenant or oath to David.
89.48 Sheol. See note on 6.5.
89.50–51 The insults with which the king is taunted are probably taunts that God has abandoned him (cf. 42.3, 10; 79.10). Anointed. See note on 2.2.
89.52 A doxology concluding the third book of the Psalter (Pss 73–89). See note on 41.13. Blessed. See note on 103.1–2.
BOOK IV: PSALMS 90–106
PSALM 90
God’s Eternity and Human Frailty
A Prayer of Moses, the man of God.
1Lord, you have been our dwelling placea
in all generations.
2Before the mountains were brought forth,
or ever you had formed the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
3You turn usb back to dust,
and say, “Turn back, you mortals.”
4For a thousand years in your sight
are like yesterday when it is past,
or like a watch in the night.
5You sweep them away; they are like a dream,
like grass that is renewed in the morning;
6in the morning it flourishes and is renewed;
in the evening it fades and withers.
7For we are consumed by your anger;
by your wrath we are overwhelmed.
8You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your countenance.
9For all our days pass away under your wrath;
our years come to an endc like a sigh.
10The days of our life are seventy years,
or perhaps eighty, if we are strong;
even then their spand is only toil and trouble;
they are soon gone, and we fly away.
11Who considers the power of your anger?
Your wrath is as great as the fear that is due you.
12So teach us to count our days
that we may gain a wise heart.
13Turn, O LORD! How long?
Have compassion on your servants!
14Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love,
so that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
15Make us glad as many days as you have afflicted us,
and as many years as we have seen evil.
16Let your work be manifest to your servants,
and your glorious power to their children.
17Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,
and prosper for us the work of our hands—
O prosper the work of our hands!
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a Another reading is our refuge
b Heb humankind
c Syr: Heb we bring our years to an end
d Cn Compare Gk Syr Jerome Tg: Heb pride
90.1–17 A prayer of the community reflecting on human frailty and seeking wisdom and God’s favor. It is the only psalm attributed to Moses. The association may be because of the tradition that recalls Moses as the one who asked God to turn (so v. 13) from wrath in Ex 32.12.
90.1–6 The eternal nature of God contrasted with the transient nature of human beings.
90.1 Dwelling place, or “refuge” (cf. 71.3; 91.9; Deut 33.27). God has provided a place of belonging and protection for the people from the beginning of time (cf. Ps 46).
90.2 Cf. Job 38.4.
90.3 Cf. 103.14; Gen 2.7; 3.19; Job 34.14–15.
90.4 Cf. 2 Pet 3.8. Watch, one of the three periods into which the nighttime hours were divided.
90.5–6 Cf. 103.15–18; Isa 40.6–8.
90.7–12 Human mortality issues from the judgment of God on human sin (cf. Rom 6.23).
90.8 Cf. 19.12.
90.11 Fear. See note on 34.7.
90.12 Cf. 39.4–6. Wise heart, the ability to discern the purposes of God. Acknowledging human frailty and the certainty of death may lead to the proper perspective with which to live in the present.
90.13–17 Prayer for God to redeem the time and deal favorably with the people.
90.13 How long? See note on 6.3.
90.14 Cf. 81.16; 91.16; 103.5; 107.8–9.
90.17 Prosper, lit. “establish.” A prayer that God may give enduring value to the work of the community.
PSALM 91
Assurance of God’s Protection
1You who live in the shelter of the Most High,
who abide in the shadow of the Almighty,a
2will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress;
my God, in whom I trust.”
3For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler
and from the deadly pestilence;
4he will cover you with his pinions,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.
5You will not fear the terror of the night,
or the arrow that flies by day,
6or the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
or the destruction that wastes at noonday.
7A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
8You will only look with your eyes
and see the punishment of the wicked.
9Because you have made the LORD your refuge,b
the Most High your dwelling place,
10no evil shall befall you,
no scourge come near your tent.
11For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways.
12On their hands they will bear you up,
so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.
13You will tread on the lion and the adder,
the young lion and the serpent you will trample under foot.
14Those who love me, I will deliver;
I will protect those who know my name.
15When they call to me, I will answer them;
I will be with them in trouble,
I will rescue them and honor them.
16With long life I will satisfy them,
and show them my salvation.
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a Traditional rendering of Heb Shaddai
b Cn: Heb Because you, LORD, are my refuge; you have made
91.1–13 A didactic or wisdom psalm elaborating with many images that God’s protection from harm and danger is manifest and reliable.
91.1–2 Address to one who enters the sanctuary. Refuge. See vv. 2, 9; 90.1; note on 2.10–12.
91.1 Shelter may allude to the protective area of the sanctuary (cf. 27.5; 31.20; 61.4). Shadow refers to wings (see v. 4; 17.8; 36.7; 57.1; 63.7).
91.2 The one addressed is inv
ited to make a confession of personal trust in God.
91.3–13 The justification for that confidence is laid out in detail. The Lord’s protection is against human enemies or persecutors (v. 3) as well as demonic forces or sickness (vv. 5–6, 10).
91.4 Pinions and wings suggest the image of God as an eagle protecting its young (cf. v. 1; Deut 32.10–11; Isa 31.5).
91.5 Arrow that flies by day, possibly sunstroke.
91.11–12 Cf. Mt 4.6; Lk 4.10–11. Bear you up. See Ex 19.4.
91.13 Lion, adder, serpent, symbolic of dangers and enemies. See note on 7.2.
91.14–16 A divine oracle of salvation that typically was given, perhaps through a priest (see 1 Sam 1.17) or a prophet (e.g., Isa 41.8–13), to those who cried to God in trouble. Cf. 22.21b; 35.3.
PSALM 92
Thanksgiving for Vindication
A Psalm. A Song for the Sabbath Day.
1It is good to give thanks to the LORD,
to sing praises to your name, O Most High;
2to declare your steadfast love in the morning,
and your faithfulness by night,
3to the music of the lute and the harp,
to the melody of the lyre.
4For you, O LORD, have made me glad by your work;
at the works of your hands I sing for joy.
5How great are your works, O LORD!
Your thoughts are very deep!
6The dullard cannot know,
the stupid cannot understand this:
7though the wicked sprout like grass
and all evildoers flourish,
they are doomed to destruction forever,
8but you, O LORD, are on high forever.
9For your enemies, O LORD,
for your enemies shall perish;
all evildoers shall be scattered.
10But you have exalted my horn like that of the wild ox;
you have poured over mea fresh oil.
11My eyes have seen the downfall of my enemies;
my ears have heard the doom of my evil assailants.
12The righteous flourish like the palm tree,
and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
13They are planted in the house of the LORD;
they flourish in the courts of our God.
14In old age they still produce fruit;
they are always green and full of sap,
15showing that the LORD is upright;
he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.
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a Syr: Meaning of Heb uncertain
92.1–15 A hymn of thanksgiving for God’s just order as demonstrated in the psalmist’s deliverance from enemies. A Song for the Sabbath Day, a later designation of the psalm as part of the Sabbath celebration, the only psalm so designated in the Hebrew text of the Psalter.
92.1–3 Hymnic introduction (cf. 106.1; 107.1; 118.1; 136.1).
92.2 Morning and…night, i.e., continually, though the psalm may also have in mind morning sacrifices and nightly praise. (134.1–2).
92.4–15 The grounds for praising and giving thanks.
92.4–11 The greatness of God’s wonderful work as demonstrated in the defeat of the enemies of God and in the exaltation of the one who gives thanks.
92.10 Horn. See note on 75.4–5. Oil, a symbol of favor and well-being (23.5; 45.7; 133.2).
92.12–15 In contrast to the temporary success of the wicked (v. 7), the righteous endure and flourish in God’s presence throughout their life.
92.12 Palm tree, cedar in Lebanon, symbols of prosperity and longevity (cf. 1.3; 52.8; 104.16; Jer 17.8).
PSALM 93
The Majesty of God’s Rule
1The LORD is king, he is robed in majesty;
the LORD is robed, he is girded with strength.
He has established the world; it shall never be moved;
2your throne is established from of old;
you are from everlasting.
3The floods have lifted up, O LORD,
the floods have lifted up their voice;
the floods lift up their roaring.
4More majestic than the thunders of mighty waters,
more majestic than the wavesa of the sea,
majestic on high is the LORD!
5Your decrees are very sure;
holiness befits your house,
O LORD, forevermore.
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a Cn: Heb majestic are the waves
93.1–5 A hymn of praise celebrating God’s rule over the world. It belongs to a group of psalms (Pss 47; 93; 95–99) that have been called “enthronement psalms” because they may have been used on festival occasions when God was declared to be king (see 93.1; 95.3; 96.10; 97.1; 98.6; 99.1). Similar language and themes are to be found in the prophecy of Isa 40–55.
93.1–2 The establishment of God’s rule. The LORD is king, or “The LORD has become king,” is to be understood as a declaration of God’s enduring kingship or, in the latter case, as the declaration that at a particular moment in the festival celebration the Lord’s enthronement is formally declared. The psalm assumes that God’s rule as sovereign is from eternity (v. 2; cf. 29.10), but it is possible that at one of the annual festivals, perhaps the Festival of Booths, or Tabernacles, in the fall, the Lord’s victory over the forces of chaos and disorder (see vv. 3–4) was celebrated by the people in a ritual and hymnic act of enthronement declaring the Lord’s rule anew.
93.3–4 The establishment of God’s eternal rule is accomplished by the defeat of the powers of chaos as represented in the floods and waters. Lying behind this notion are Mesopotamian and Canaanite conceptions of divine kingship as established by victory over the sea and the deep (cf. 74.13; Job 38.8–11; Isa 27.1; 51.9–10).
93.5 Praise of the Lord is also because of the reliability of God’s law and God’s holy house, the temple.
PSALM 94
God the Avenger of the Righteous
1O LORD, you God of vengeance,
you God of vengeance, shine forth!
2Rise up, O judge of the earth;
give to the proud what they deserve!
3O LORD, how long shall the wicked,
how long shall the wicked exult?
4They pour out their arrogant words;
all the evildoers boast.
5They crush your people, O LORD,
and afflict your heritage.
6They kill the widow and the stranger,
they murder the orphan,
7and they say, “The LORD does not see;
the God of Jacob does not perceive.”
8Understand, O dullest of the people;
fools, when will you be wise?
9He who planted the ear, does he not hear?
He who formed the eye, does he not see?
10He who disciplines the nations,
he who teaches knowledge to humankind,
does he not chastise?
11The LORD knows our thoughts,a
that they are but an empty breath.
12Happy are those whom you discipline, O LORD,
and whom you teach out of your law,
13giving them respite from days of trouble,
until a pit is dug for the wicked.
14For the LORD will not forsake his people;
he will not abandon his heritage;
15for justice will return to the righteous,
and all the upright in heart will follow it.
16Who rises up for me against the wicked?
Who stands up for me against evildoers?
17If the LORD had not been my help,
my soul would soon have lived in the land of silence.
18When I thought, “My foot is slipping,”
your steadfast love, O LORD, held me up.
19When the cares of my heart are many,
your consolations cheer my soul.
20Can wicked rulers be allied with you,
those
who contrive mischief by statute?
21They band together against the life of the righteous,
and condemn the innocent to death.
22But the LORD has become my stronghold,
and my God the rock of my refuge.
23He will repay them for their iniquity
and wipe them out for their wickedness;
the LORD our God will wipe them out.
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a Heb the thoughts of humankind
94.1–23 A prayer for God’s help by an individual whose present suffering at the hands of the powerful is representative of the larger community’s distress.
94.1–2 The initial call for God to render judgment.
94.1 Vengeance, i.e., vindication and compassion for the righteous or innocent and judgment for the wicked (cf. Deut 32.35–36; Rom 12.19). Shine forth. See note on 80.1.
94.2 Judge of the earth. See 7.8; 9.8–9; 58.11; 76.8–9; 82.8; Gen 18.25.
94.3–7 The complaint against the wicked. The power of the wicked against the people is a challenge to God’s power and care.
94.3 How long? See note on 6.3.
94.5 Heritage, the property of the Lord; cf. Deut 32.8–9.
94.6 Widow, stranger, orphan, the dependent, whose care by the community is the mark of true justice (Ex 22.21–24; Deut 24.17, 21; 26.12; 27.19; Isa 1.17; Jer 7.6; 22.3) and for whom God has special concern (Ex 22.24; Pss 68.5; 82.3–4; 146.9). V. 20 suggests that the oppression is judicial in character, carried out by judges and rulers who use the courts to oppress the weak, possibly even committing legal murder (cf. 1 Kings 21).
94.8–11 The foolishness of the wicked, who think that God does not see and care about their wickedness. Cf. 10.3–4; 14.1; 53.1.
94.12–15 The ultimate confidence and blessing of the righteous is in God, who will not forsake and will ensure that justice is done. Happy. See note on 1.1.